Memories of Childhood on the Boulevard, Part I

Along with the usual contents such as community memorabilia and newspaper articles, there are some very special letters included in the Minnetrista cornerstone. They were written by Janice Ball Fisher, Helen Ball Robinson, Lucy Ball Owsley, Rosemary Ball Bracken, and their cousin Doris Mauck Friedrichs.

Front row, left to right: Margaret Ball Petty, Helen Ball Robinson, Lucy Ball Owsley, Elisabeth Ball. Back row, left to right: Janice Ball Fisher, Doris Mauck Friedrichs, Rosemary Ball Bracken, Adelia Ball Morris.

Each woman shared stories of childhood on Minnetrista Boulevard. Helen, daughter of Lucius L. and Sarah Ball, wrote, “I was fortunate, for altho I was an only child, my many cousins were like brothers and sisters. I was especially close to Elisabeth, who lived next door, and to Lucy and Margaret. I was included in all the family gatherings and trips, even helping to trim the big Christmas tree at Uncle Frank’s house…. Altogether, it was a very happy childhood for me, which I enjoy recalling in this my 93rd year.”

Janice’s father, Edmund F. Ball, died when she was only eight years old, so she especially cherished memories of him. She noted that he was a very busy man but found time to spend with his children like the time that he pulled her, her sister Adelia “Diggie”, and her cousin Rosemary on sleds behind her mother Bertha’s electric car. Her father “went over a railroad crossing and off we bounced. Two blocks later, he noticed we were missing and came back to pick us up.” Janice also says that her mother, Bertha, “… was a very active woman, but also played many games with me and took me with her on several of her trips.”

Doris, daughter of Frances Ball and her husband Joseph Mauck, didn’t live on the boulevard but visited often. She was “particularly close to Helen and Elisabeth and to Lucy Ball.” According to Doris, she thought that the name “Minnetrista” came from “… Aunt Lucina and my mother who was then living in Minneapolis … suggested the name ‘Minnetrista’ derived from the language of the Indians living in Minnesota.”

Helen (standing) and Elisabeth.

Next month, I’ll share memories from sisters Lucy and Rosemary and stories about their sister, Margaret, shared by her daughter-in-law, Frances Petty Sargent.

Left to right: Elisabeth, Adelia “Diggie,” Margaret, Helen, Lucy; Rosemary holding Janice seated in front.